Familicide
Encyclopedia
A familicide is a type of murder
or murder-suicide
in which at least one spouse and one or more children are killed; or in which a parent or parents and possibly other relatives such as siblings and grandparents are killed. In some cases all of the family members' lives are taken. If only the parents are killed, the case may also be referred to as a parricide
.
Of 909 cases of mass murder
(defined as 4 victims within a 24-hour period) in the US from 1900 to 2000, more than half occurred within an immediate family. Although the total number of familicide cases are relatively rare, they are the most common form of mass killings. However, statistical data is difficult to establish due to reporting discrepancies.
Familicide differs from other forms of mass murder in that the murderer kills family members or loved ones rather than anonymous people. This has a different psychodynamic and psychiatric significance, but the distinction is not always made.
A study of 30 cases in Ohio found that most of the killings were motivated by a parent's desire to stop their children's suffering.
In Australia, a study was done of seven cases of filicide followed by suicide in which marital separation followed by custody and access disputes were identified as an issue. Some common factors such as marital discord, unhappiness, domestic violence, sexual abuse, threats of harm to self or others were found in varying degrees. It was not clear what could be done in terms of prevention.
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
or murder-suicide
Murder-suicide
A murder–suicide is an act in which an individual kills one or more other persons before or at the same time as killing himself or herself. The combination of murder and suicide can take various forms, including:...
in which at least one spouse and one or more children are killed; or in which a parent or parents and possibly other relatives such as siblings and grandparents are killed. In some cases all of the family members' lives are taken. If only the parents are killed, the case may also be referred to as a parricide
Parricide
Parricide is defined as:*the act of murdering one's father , mother or other close relative, but usually not children ....
.
Of 909 cases of mass murder
Mass murder
Mass murder is the act of murdering a large number of people , typically at the same time or over a relatively short period of time. According to the FBI, mass murder is defined as four or more murders occurring during a particular event with no cooling-off period between the murders...
(defined as 4 victims within a 24-hour period) in the US from 1900 to 2000, more than half occurred within an immediate family. Although the total number of familicide cases are relatively rare, they are the most common form of mass killings. However, statistical data is difficult to establish due to reporting discrepancies.
Familicide differs from other forms of mass murder in that the murderer kills family members or loved ones rather than anonymous people. This has a different psychodynamic and psychiatric significance, but the distinction is not always made.
A study of 30 cases in Ohio found that most of the killings were motivated by a parent's desire to stop their children's suffering.
In Australia, a study was done of seven cases of filicide followed by suicide in which marital separation followed by custody and access disputes were identified as an issue. Some common factors such as marital discord, unhappiness, domestic violence, sexual abuse, threats of harm to self or others were found in varying degrees. It was not clear what could be done in terms of prevention.
Notable familicides
See also List of familicides- Chris BenoitChris BenoitChristopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
, June 22–24, 2007, killed his wife, son, and himselfChris Benoit double murder and suicideThe Chris Benoit double murder suicide occurred over a three-day period ending on June 24, 2007. World Wrestling Entertainment professional wrestler Chris Benoit killed his wife, Nancy Benoit, strangled his seven-year-old son, Daniel, and subsequently committed suicide by hanging. Autopsy results...
. - Marty Bergen, January 19, 1900, killed his wife and children with an axe, then slit his own throat.
- Bradford BishopBradford BishopWilliam Bradford "Brad" Bishop, Jr. was a United States Foreign Service officer who has been a fugitive from justice since allegedly murdering five members of his family in 1976.-Known biography:...
murdered his three children, mother, and his wife in 1976. - Ronald DeFeo, Jr.Ronald DeFeo, Jr.Ronald Joseph "Butch" DeFeo, Jr. is an American murderer. He was tried and convicted for the 1974 killings of his father, mother, two brothers and two sisters...
, The inspiration for The Amityville HorrorThe Amityville HorrorThe Amityville Horror: A True Story is a book by Jay Anson, published in September 1977. It is also the basis of a series of films released between 1979 and 2005...
, November 13, 1974, killed his father, mother, two brothers and two sisters. - Neil EntwistleNeil EntwistleNeil Entwistle is an English man convicted of murdering his American wife, Rachel, and their infant daughter Lillian on 20 January 2006 in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, US.-Early life:...
, January 20, 2006, killed his wife and infant daughter - George Forster murdered his wife and child by drowning them in Paddington Canal, London: he was hanged at NewgateNewgateNewgate at the west end of Newgate Street was one of the historic seven gates of London Wall round the City of London and one of the six which date back to Roman times. From it a Roman road led west to Silchester...
on 18 January 1803. - Kip KinkelKip KinkelKipland Philip "Kip" Kinkel is an American spree killer. In May 1998, at the age of 15, he murdered his parents and engaged in a school shooting at Thurston High School in Springfield, Oregon that left two students dead and 22 others wounded...
, May 20, 1998, killed his parents before school shooting spree, two additional dead and 25 wounded. - John ListJohn ListJohn Emil List was an American murderer. On November 9, 1971, he murdered his wife, mother, and three children in Westfield, New Jersey, and then disappeared. He had planned everything so meticulously that nearly a month passed before anyone noticed that anything was amiss...
, November 9, 1971, killed his mother, wife and three teenage children. - Jeffrey MacDonald, February 17, 1970, killed his wife and two pre-school daughters.
- William ParenteWilliam ParenteWilliam M. Parente was a New York real estate attorney who came into the spotlight following the murders of his wife and two daughters and his suicide...
, April 19–20, 2009, killed his wife, two daughters, and himself. - Scott PetersonScott PetersonScott Lee Peterson , an American, was convicted of murdering his wife, Laci Peterson, and their unborn child in Modesto, California, in 2002. Peterson's arrest and subsequent trial dominated the American news media until 2005, when he was sentenced to death by lethal injection...
, December 24, 2002, killed his eight months pregnant wife - Dipendra Bir Bikram ShahDipendra of NepalDipendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev was a member of the Nepalese Royal Family, who briefly reigned in coma as King of Nepal from the 1st of June to the 4th of June, 2001...
, June 1, 2001, allegedly killed the royal family of Nepal at a family dinner, he died later from a self-inflicted gunshot to the side of the head. - Charles StuartCharles Stuart (murderer)Charles "Chuck" Stuart was a man from Reading, Massachusetts who murdered his pregnant wife and inflamed racial tensions in the Boston area by concocting a fictitious African-American assailant.-Murders:...
, October 23, 1989, killed pregnant wife and blamed it on imaginary black hijacker; seven-month fetus delivered alive but died in 17 days; committed suicide less than three months after murders. - Steven SueppelSteven SueppelSteven Sueppel was a former executive of Hills Bank and Trust Company and resident of Iowa City, Iowa, United States. He was charged with stealing $559,040 from the bank over a period of several years, but pleaded not guilty to embezzlement and money laundering on February 20, 2008...
, March 23–24, 2008, killed his wife, four children, and himself. - Marcus Delon WessonMarcus WessonMarcus Delon Wesson is a man convicted of nine counts of first-degree murder and 14 sex crimes, including the rape and molestation of his underage daughters. His victims were his own children, fathered by incestuous relationships with his daughters and nieces, as well as the children by his wife...
, March 12, 2004, killed nine of his children/wives that he fathered through his legal wife and his polygamist wives who were also his daughters and nieces. - James RuppertJames RuppertJames Urban Ruppert , is an American murderer, who was responsible for the deadliest shooting inside a private residence in American history. On March 30, 1975, Easter Sunday, Ruppert murdered 11 family members in his mother's house at 635 Minor Avenue in Hamilton, Ohio in what is referred to as...
, March 30 1975, Easter Sunday, Ruppert murdered 11 family members in his mother's house at 635 Minor Avenue in Hamilton, Ohio in what is referred to as the Easter Sunday Massacre. The deadliest shooting inside a private residence in American history.
Related terms
- InfanticideInfanticideInfanticide or infant homicide is the killing of a human infant. Neonaticide, a killing within 24 hours of a baby's birth, is most commonly done by the mother.In many past societies, certain forms of infanticide were considered permissible...
- The killing of one's child (or children) up to 12 months of age. - FilicideFilicideFilicide is the deliberate act of a parent killing his or her own son or daughter. The word filicide derives from the Latin words filius meaning "son" or filia meaning daughter and the suffix -cide meaning to kill, murder, or cause death...
- A parent or parents killing their own child or children. - MariticideMariticideMariticide literally means the murder of one's married partner, but has become most associated with the murder of a husband by his wife, as the reverse is given the name uxoricide.In England the punishment until 1790 was to be strangled and burnt at the stake.-Historical:* Laodice I allegedly...
- The killing of a husband by the wife, but commonly used for either spouse. - UxoricideUxoricideUxoricide is murder of one's wife. It can refer to the act itself or the man who carries it out.- Known or suspected uxoricides:...
- The killing of a wife by a husband.